It happens every rush hour. Cars are barely moving forward when, just as a traffic light turns yellow, some halfwit drives into the middle of the intersection and sits there as the light turns red, effectively blocking vehicle flow.

Yes, it’s unlawful, but perpetrators go unpunished unless a police officer happens to be on hand to witness their offence. And that means they’re almost never caught. The same goes for scofflaws who slow down traffic by making illegal turns, trying to squeeze into lanes where they don’t belong.

Meanwhile, gridlock in Toronto goes from bad to worse.

It doesn’t have to be this way. Technology provides a reliable, cost-effective and efficient method of slapping these offenders with fines hefty enough to change their street-clogging ways. There’s just one problem: that technology is photo radar, and its very name is an anathema to provincial legislators.

But Queen’s Park’s reluctance to do the right thing hasn’t discouraged Police Chief Bill Blair from repeatedly calling for photo radar cameras at key Toronto intersections. And he is right to persist in making this case.

Jurisdictions around the world rely on photo enforcement of traffic laws. Toronto has gone a small step in this direction with deployment of 87 cameras designed to catch drivers who breeze through red lights. It’s worth going further and cracking down on motorists who selfishly fuel gridlock by clogging intersections and indulging in illegal turns.

There’s no other practical way to catch them. Blair notes that police officers are an expensive resource. And there are simply too many problem intersections in this city to cover with uniformed staff on any consistent basis. Even when officers pull over and catch a culprit, traffic is blocked as the offender is issued a ticket. Photo radar could nail them much more efficiently while drivers exercising good judgment go unscathed.

The technology needn’t prove a “cash grab.” Blair envisions using photo radar as a deterrent, with large signs warning errant motorists at key intersections that they risk a ticket. This approach would help keep traffic flowing while freeing officers from doing routine traffic stops, allowing them to concentrate on more essential tasks.

Several city councillors have expressed their support but provincial approval is needed to deploy this technology. Politicians at Queen’s Park should set aside their photo radar phobia and at least grant cities the authority to use these cameras.

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